As the World Falls Down
by Delena Aneled Hupp
Summary: A lesson in love and loss: Naruto and Sakura progress through life. -NaruSaku- -Undergoing minor revisions-
1. Rarity of Seasons

_As the World Falls Down_

**_By_** Delena/Aneled Hupp

**_Rating_** PG (for the time being)

**_Genre_** Drama/Romance/Angst

**_Legalities_** Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura, and all other shinobi mentioned in this fic are property of Kishimoto Masashi.

**_Mission Statistic Warnings_** Het and angst.

**_Mission Status Report _**Multi-chapter

**_End briefing-Begin Chapitre: Rarity of Seasons_**

It was one of those days, the kind that can only be experienced at the tail end of summer shifting to autumn, where the weather was neither cool nor hot but a pleasant balance in the middle. Though technically, Naruto and Sakura were no longer students under Hatake Kakashi's tutelage they still took his advice when he mentioned the day was perfect for training. Naruto- Jounin level though he was- still felt inclined to complain.

So there they were in the last days of summer, training. After half the day had passed Sakura was chagrined to find herself tiring while Naruto, ever full of energy, continued sparring with ease. Her defence slipped and in a split second, she found herself staring dizzily at the sky. If it were a complete necessity, she would have regained her stance as quickly as possible, but it wasn't necessary and years of being Naruto's team-mate had some influence on her sparring priorities- at least where gorgeous days were concerned.

"Sakura-chan, you okay?" Naruto loomed over her and offered his hand. An apprehensive looked passed over his face as he momentarily struggled between the idea of running in fear of the kunoichi's wrath or staying to help her stand. A wicked grin graced Sakura's face and before Naruto had time to react, she swept his legs from beneath him. He fell gracelessly over her, and would have landed on her had he not caught himself. Situations like this had occurred before; it had become a joking routine almost. Naruto cracked a somewhat perverted grin.

"Yes, I'm fine Naruto-kun, why do you ask?" she said in a peculiar tone and wrapped her arms around Naruto's neck seductively before she altered the routine; she pulled him into a quick kiss.

Maybe it wasn't quite the revenge she had wanted to exact, but look of shock on his face was good enough for the moment.

End Chapitre 

**_Post-Mission Briefing_** This is kind of an experimental writing style for me. The chapters should be able to stand alone as linked one-shots; they are also ungodly short. This is my response to an overabundance of SasuSaku. Long live NaruSaku.


	2. The Rest Is Silence

_**The Rest Is Silence**_

She had heard the news first. When she filed the mission report she heard shadowed whispers in the room; Umino Iruka, a Chuunin and instructor at the pre-Genin academy, had been killed. Sakura herself had never known the man well; kunoichi spent most of their pre-Genin years in a separate class for female shinobi. However, she was not ignorant to the fact that Naruto saw the man as something akin to a brother, or a father.

She had left the room without a word.

A sick feeling began to well up in her stomach as she walked alone. How would she tell Naruto? Should she tell him? If he learned of the death from someone else, but found that she knew; would he be hurt? Perhaps it was in her best interest and Naruto's to break the news as soon as was acceptably possible. Whenever that happened to be.

Sakura tried to hide her apprehensive face when she returned to Naruto's apartment. She found him on the couch, sprawled and already asleep. She gently nudged the blonde shinobi awake.

"Naruto..." she wasn't sure what to say when he shifted into wakefulness. The look of contentment on his face when he first awoke faded as he took careful note that Sakura was avoiding eye contact. He shifted into a sitting position, allowing her to take a seat beside him. Sakura suddenly leaned forward and kissed him with a startling lack of fervour, and pulled back soon after.

"I- I... Naruto, I'm so sorry," she wiped away a hasty tear of her own and embraced him cautiously,

"About Umino-sensei... Naruto, I'm so sorry."

End Chapitre 

**_Post-Mission Analysis_** The next chapter is longer. I'll post it soon, please bear with me on this chapter, my fics are notorious for slow starts.


	3. White Flag

_**White Flag**_

Sakura had heard it from Tsunade; she heard almost all bad news from the Hokage. As genuinely sorry as she felt about Umino Iruka's death, that sympathy was directed more towards Naruto's attachment to the Chuunin than it was for the memory of the teacher himself. The deceased instructor had many to mourn his loss; Naruto still had few to comfort him in sorrow. Sakura had chosen to stay.

Now, however, the news of a death startled Sakura. Uzumaki Naruto was loud, at twenty-two he was still obnoxious, he was talented, and headstrong. What he wasn't- what he couldn't be- was dead. A permanent fixture in Sakura's life, Naruto was deemed indestructible in her eyes, even in their Genin years when he was an obstacle for her affections towards Sasuke.

There was a shock of deep blue just beyond Sakura's sight. The Hokage's chair creaked as she stood.

"One of his Genin brought this back," Tsunade said softly as she passed a long and bloodied hitai-ate to Sakura; there was no doubt to whom it had belonged. Sakura barely nodded as she took the dirtied scrap in her hand.

"Will that be all, Godaime-sama?" Sakura forced out the words. Tsunade merely nodded.

Sakura stepped out of the door of the Tower onto the cold, rainy, and moderately crowded streets of Konoha. From her place in front of the Hokage's Tower, she took no heed of direction in specific and began to follow no plotted course. Her feet took care of her as she shut down her mind.

_A shinobi must not let emotions show._

She found herself on a back street somewhere in the southern district, and it took her some time to know where precisely and, better yet, _why_. Naruto's apartment. It was in the very complex behind which she stood where he had lived. Sakura's memory sprung to life once more and before she could abate them, her tears began freefalling.

Her vision blurred; she steadied herself against the complex's wall still furiously clutching her fallen comrade's hitai-ate. The rain fell chill on her bare shoulders, her breath condensed before her in a small cloud, and she shivered. Without warning, the dam broke and she found herself sobbing violently in the alleyway.

End Chapitre 

**_Post-Mission Analysis_** Stay tuned; more to come. This chapter and the next are currently the two longest. I'm quite pleased with them. I'm quite fond of chapter eight as well.


	4. Like A Prayer

Like A Prayer 

It had been three weeks since Uzumaki Naruto had been officially filed as killed in action. Three weeks of unnatural silence in the Hokage's office and, Tsunade knew, in the fallen shinobi's home. Sakura, in turn, had been silent for a better part of those three weeks. The young woman never wavered in the line of duty, efficiently giving the required medical attention to whoever happened to be on her team during a given assignment. She still fought to the fullest, perhaps with a bit more ferocity than she would have in the past.

Sakura's silence was heartbreaking in itself; and Tsunade could understand it completely.

The girl had lost a teammate to treachery, as Tsunade had. The irony of the Uchiha boy's situation had not escaped the Hokage.

Tsunade lost the man she held most dear to death; Sakura now felt that same pain.

The difference in the Hokage's case lay in the fact that she still had a teammate while Sakura was now alone in that aspect.

Tsunade sighed as she faced the paperwork before her. Everyday, reports of shinobi killed or wounded while on assignment reached her and she faced all of them with a sort of detached apathy. Some were unbearably young; there were Genin killed on low-level assignments, there were Genin killed on high-level missions. Everyday, Tsunade noticed the ages of the fallen, saw their faces in profile pictures, felt a bit of her heart ache; but she stopped losing sleep a month after accepting the Hokage title. A shinobi simply couldn't function that way, she knew this all too well.

Three weeks after the fact, however, Tsunade found herself once again reading the report made by Naruto's surviving Genin, and found herself scouring the official file that listed the young man as dead.

Three weeks later, she still wept for the child that had kept her Dan and her Nawaki alive. She wept for the boy who should have one day taken her Hokage title. She wept for the man he would never become.

Four weeks later, Tsunade would find herself nearly stunned beyond words.

Tired and filthy from blood and dirt, Uzumaki Naruto himself came stumbling into the Hokage's office. He slapped down a thin stack of papers onto Tsunade's desk with as much energy as he could muster.

"There, Baa-san, I finished my report," he said half-heartedly.

At that moment, Tsunade was certain she would cry.

End Chapitre 

**_Post-Mission Analysis _**I love that kid too much to let him die so soon. His other two Genin students are safe as well, by the way.


	5. Ramen and Black Shirts

Ramen and Black Shirts 

Naruto made his way wearily through Konoha's streets. Tsunade had informed him that his missing student had found his way back to Konoha and filed an earlier mission report, so he hoped the other two would think to look for him.

As he trekked through the thin traffic, he couldn't help noticing that stares he was receiving. Granted, he was used to stares, but they had never been like this. People looked relieved. There were some who were certain they were being visited by the dead, but the majority realised that they were witnessing a walking miracle, and to this end they smiled.

Case-in-point, Naruto had even been accosted by blubbering Yamanaka Ino before he made it to his home; he had made the mistake of passing the flower shop. Well, maybe not by mistake, he had entered it with every intention of buying "I'm sorry for making you think I was dead" flowers for Sakura. After being gone for more than a month, he figured it was the least he could do.

The bell on the shop door tinkled merrily.

"Hey, uh, Ino-chan? I need some flowers."

The blonde kunoichi was seated behind the counter, fervently engrossed with a magazine.

"Mm hm… What for?" apparently his presence had not yet registered with her.

"Well, I've been away a while… I think Sakura might be a little pissed about that…"

"Apology flowers are fif-" Ino snapped to attention; she faced Naruto with wide eyes.

"Oh…my…god…" Her voice wavered as tears began welling in her eyes.

"Ino-chan?" By this point, Naruto had begun backing away nervously. His reaction time was slowed, however, after weeks on the field so the hapless shinobi had no means of escaping the emotion-crazed kunoichi as she leapt over the counter and tackled him fiercely.

"Naruto-kun! We thought you were dead!" Ino all but wailed. Naruto was certain she had said something else… or actually a lot of something else, but her tears were muffling by her babbling. Well, Naruto decided, at least his uniform was already messy.

"So you _didn't_ die."

Naruto hadn't noticed Shikamaru.

"She's still making you work?" Shikamaru just shrugged.

"What's Temari think of that?" Naruto wasn't so exhausted that he was above teasing.

"Dunno," Shikamaru conceded.

Needless to say, Ino's ruckus caused an even larger stir and soon enough nearly ever shinobi and civilian in Konoha knew that Uzumaki Naruto had returned alive, contrary to report. Every shinobi, sans Sakura.

When the blonde kunoichi had finally settled, she was inquired by Naruto of Sakura's whereabouts. In all honesty, Ino could not answer, so Naruto purchased fifteen orange tea roses, and continued his way home.

After having spent a decidedly long time fumbling for his apartment keys once he finally arrived, Naruto finally remembered he never brought them on missions. So, after a few more minutes of trying to rack his sleep-deprived mind for the hiding place of the keys Naruto gave up and decided to try his luck without them. If he was lucky, maybe he had forgotten to lock his place before leaving. The exhausted shinobi was pleasantly surprised to find that, in his haste, he had indeed forgotten to lock the door.

Cautionary tactics aside and feeling safe knowing he was finally home, Naruto awkwardly plodded into his small apartment room. He stopped dead in his tracks; for there, in his direct line of sight, were the two great loves in his life: a very surprised Haruno Sakura (wearing one of his shirts, he noticed in amusement) and a steaming bowl of ramen in her hands.

It should be noted though, that the bowl was now on a collision course to the floor.

End Chapitre 

**_Post-Mission Analysis _**If anyone's wondering, these are written accompaniments to my illustrated fic in my deviantART gallery.

**_Edit_** I added the chunk of conversation with Ino and Shikamaru, you have Alesca Munroe to blame for that one. FYI, fifteen roses are for apology, tea roses mean "I still love you", and orange roses are for fascination… but Naruto didn't care as long as they were orange.


	6. Fairyland

**_Fairyland_**

It wasn't a complete shock. Sakura certainly was not at a loss for explanation; and she really had no objection, she just wasn't ready. She was twenty-three and still progressing as a shinobi and as a medic. She was still trying in vain to collect the shattered remnants of an adolescence brought to an abrupt and unwelcome halt, still trying to undo the past, still hoping to resurrect an old demon. A part of her- as was also the case with Naruto- was still waiting for the day Sasuke would come through Konoha's gates, ready to finally resume life from the point where he had unceremoniously dropped his teammates. That part of her couldn't handle the responsibility with which she was now faced.

She wasn't ready for maternity.

It was no mystery how it had happened; she just never thought she'd be a mother so soon.

Naruto knew, of course. When she had broken the news, he couldn't refrain from lifting her off the ground and twirling her around the room, knocking over two lamps, a cup of warm milk, and the end table in the process. She didn't have the heart to tell him she had her reservations; he seemed so elated of the prospect of parenthood, she couldn't crush that.

The best person to consult on the matter was another woman, a shinobi preferably, someone who could understand her dilemma.

"How exactly is this a bad thing?" Unfortunately, Ino was the only present kunoichi. Sakura now noticed how well the Hyuuga girl could remain out of reach when needed concerning domestic matters.

"Being a parent kind of puts a damper on the whole 'risking your life for the job' thing," Sakura replied. A bowl of miso was set before her, she then reverted her attention to Ino.

Ino took a mouthful of rice before continuing,

"You've only got a few months before you can leave it with a babysitter, it's not that long."

"You forget the nine months of maternity leave," Sakura pointed.

"So take a break!" the blonde rebutted, "Life happens when you're not expecting it. You've got years to pick back up on your shinobi career; but there's not much time set aside for parenting."

"There's a shortage of med-nin," Sakura had a good point.

"So go until you can't anymore," Ino's tone was serious, "Does Naruto know yet?"

"Yes," Sakura bit her bottom lip.

"And?"

"He's been so excited…" Sakura focused too intently on a cube of tofu floating in her soup.

"Sakura."

"Hm?" still she avoided eye contact.

"I like kids, I can help if Naruto gets to be a handful," she grabbed Sakura's hands,

"I just think this is an incredible opportunity; give it a chance, please?"

Sakura made no immediate response.

"What are you really afraid of?" Ino's question came without warning, and Sakura's eyes shot up to meet Ino's.

"I just don't want to let anyone down," she protested, "I'm not afraid."

It was a boldfaced lie, and she knew Ino saw through it. Several moments of silence passed. Sakura emitted a world-wearied sigh.

"This means I've lost any chance to find my childhood… I'm giving up any chance to pick up where Sasuke, Naruto, and I left off so long ago… There won't be any going back," her voice seemed to shrink as she spoke. Ino waited a few moments for any stray of Sakura's train of though; when she was certain the girl would say no more a grin broke out over her face.

"Sakura, you've already come so far; we all have. There IS no going back. We've changed, they may not all be good changes, but the fact is we're all a little different. We're certainly too old now to be trying to recapture our pasts."

For a time Ino observed a conflict beneath the surface of Sakura's thoughts; the medic resumed the nervous biting of her bottom lip. Soon the clouded look on the healer's face passed and she took in a deep breath.

"Okay Ino," she started and with a grin added, "You win."

Though it was not Ino's counselling alone that had helped Sakura decide. The mention of Naruto sparked a memory for Sakura; a memory of the look of untainted joy on Naruto's face when he heard of Sakura's pregnancy.

When Naruto was that happy, Sakura couldn't help be happy with him; his smile, his _real_ smile, made Sakura believe, if only for a moment, that everything would turn out for the best.

Maybe, she though, seeing that look was worth it.

**_End Chapitre_**

**_Post-Mission Analysis_** This is the longest chapter yet. And the most dialogue-heavy yet. In some other Naruto fics that I'm writing, I've noticed I like to include Ino a good bit. I'm not quite sure why yet. I swear one day this will be worth reading --. The chapter title is that of my favourite Hamasaki Ayumi song, you can find the translation here: ayumi . primenova . com / lyrics / fairyland . htm

I think it's appropriate.


	7. Smiles

**_Smiles_**

At the age of twenty-three, Uzumaki Naruto became Hokage.

The Godaime had felt he was ready; in all honesty, she was ready as well. Eleven years was more than enough of a job she had never before considered, and though she grew to love it and to love Konoha again, she knew Yondaime's legacy would be better for everyone.

On the day Naruto officially accepted the Hokage title, Sakura was there. Since she and Naruto had first been assigned to Kakashi's team, he would declare most obnoxiously that he would be Hokage. At first, she had laughed at him. Surely, there was no way a shinobi as incompetent as he would claim such a noble title; back then she thought Hokage would be more befitting of Uchiha Sasuke. As the team had grown older and had experienced more assignments together, Sakura had begun to see that, perhaps, Naruto wasn't just wasting air with his boasts of Hokage; maybe he did have a fair shot. So during the official ceremony, Sakura watched the icon from her past fulfil his dream, and for him and those absent she smiled one of the brightest smiles of her life.

On the day Naruto officially accepted the Hokage title, his smile was forced. So many wondered why; hadn't this been his lifelong goal? Only the few present who knew the young man well understood. There were two people above all whom Naruto had wanted to witness his accomplishment, it had been that way since he was small. One of those two had been missing for almost eleven years; the other had been a little more than one. Still, he smiled- however pained it had been- for those present, and most importantly, he smiled for Sakura.

Later that very day, Naruto would cook dinner to the best of his abilities; it was never a culinary masterpiece, but he was proud to say he knew more than ramen. Later that evening, Sakura would mention- or, rather, grumble about- the temperature of the room. Six months into her pregnancy and it was showing. Naruto wouldn't answer her the first time, so she would say, a little louder, "It's really hot in here"; Naruto would find himself unable to keep a solemn face any longer as he would cross the room to adjust the temperature.

It was a ritual; despite the bitter reminders the day presented to him, he found that evenings with Sakura could always bring him cheer. She looked at him from the couch, a little disgruntled from discomfort, as a reluctant grin crossed her face.

"Congratulations," she said quietly, "Hokage."

**_End Chapitre_**

**_Post-Mission Analysis_** Sorry for the delay, I have no excuse. So, I realise the last chapter kind of jumped out of nowhere with the "WTF" factor; I'm trying to space the timeline so this doesn't turn into the trainwreck-of-overwhelming-detail that my other fics become. As for the girl-talk last chapter… you guys are still dealing with a female writer; girl-talk and Ino attack me when I'm at my weakest. Anywhoo, hope everyone enjoyed.


	8. A Purpose In Life

A Purpose In Life 

Naruto had often wondered if existence had any purpose; he wondered about it as a friendless and desperate child and he wondered about it as a grown- albeit still a bit immature- man. He sometimes speculated the possibility of purpose of his own life; nowadays, however, those ponderings were few and far between, he was Hokage after all. With the Hokage title came hours of mind-numbing paperwork… Paperwork Naruto was certain had been designed to keep him from thinking. The piles of forms and reports on his desk remained as immobile as ever. Now was one of the few times he questioned the importance of his existence. Paperwork.

Naruto rifled through disorganised piles of paper aimlessly and yawned; it was nearing eleven P.M., he wasn't _actually_ going to start working now. Anyone who thought otherwise hadn't lived in Konoha over the past two decades. All was quiet in the Hokage Tower, so Naruto made his getaway down to Konoha's empty streets.

Once at his home, he emitted a long-suffering sigh as he closed and bolted the door behind him. Silence in the house greeted his homecoming; Sakura and the baby must have already fallen asleep. Naruto took a seat on the couch, warped and flattened from the years, and he leaned back his head to look at the ceiling and once more question the vanity of his existence. A shrill laugh came from the baby's room around the corner, followed by a stream of breathless laughter and an older, deeper, more feminine laugh that soon meshed with the tiny ones. Naruto rose from the couch to investigate.

The door to the baby's room was partially open, a small lamp on the room's only nightstand glowed softly by the miniature bed. Sakura sat on the floor by the nightstand, smiling greatly at the child that lay giggling only a few feet before her. She moved with grace only a shinobi could master and in an instant was tickling the toddler. The child rolled onto his feet with much effort and half ran, half waddled over to a forgotten book on the floor where Sakura had been sitting only moments ago. He picked up the book and waved it triumphantly at his mother, still laughing, no doubt proud that he had accomplished a great feat. The boy's simple amusement only made Sakura's smile melt into soft laughter.

Naruto felt the need to smile with them, a silent observer, enjoying a rare scene meant only for him. Sakura looked up at the doorway and their eyes met for a moment. Naruto could still feel his heart quicken when she looked at him, she could still make him stutter with a quick glance; he didn't know how she still had such power after so many years. She returned her attention once more fully to the child waving the book before her face. The need to smile was too great for Naruto to resist any longer, and for the first time in several stressful weeks, he felt the muscles of his face twinge from disuse as a slow smile spread.

So maybe this wasn't the meaning of life, but seeing two people for whom he cared more than anything in the world laughing in that room- so oblivious to outside pain for those few waking moments- he found himself not caring about the meaning. As far as Naruto was concerned, what he had was better than any philosophy.

End Chapitre 

**_Post-Mission Analysis _**I'm not fond of the first few paragraphs, but something about this chapter made me feel fuzzy and maternal. Chapter eight marks the end of an arc; I won't be posting part two separately, however. It may be a few weeks before I start the second arc. Thanks for the support thus far guys!

**_Spaz Edit_** I went back and read the past chapters; so many usage mistakes/abuses, and I'm even missing whole words! Why didn't anyone tell me? Expect edits soon.


End file.
